Hook
HOOK
I t wasn’t the first time Nova and June were the topic of discussion in church. They’d been the center of a lot of discussions since Nova had started working for them. Even more so once had moved them into his place.
Today was the same, but different, and was nervous.
He wouldn’t just be discussing them with his brothers again, but he’d be sharing more about himself.
He’d arrived at the clubhouse early to discuss some of it with his Prez before church. Their clubhouse was overwhelmed with pink and yellow streamers, while balloons dominated the common area. Even that sight failed to soothe his frazzled nerves.
Not for the first time, he looked at his watch, wishing it wasn’t too early for a shot. Sitting around the diamond plate steel table in the RBMC inner sanctum was normally his happy place. Today, he just wished it to be over.
He hoped to share the bare minimum needed to form a solid plan to keep his family safe and then celebrate June’s birthday. Yes, they were his family, no matter what.
Ideally, the day would end with him and Nova in bed, but not sleeping. Then tomorrow, his brothers would help him hunt down the man who fathered his Flower. After that, it would be like a fucking fairy tale or a romance book like Devin reads—either way worked for him.
The end, run the credits, whatever.
Deep down, knew that wasn’t ever his lot in life, nor would it be, but a man could dream.
His Prez’s voice pulled him out of his head.
“With that, I’ll let and Virus impart the finer points before we discuss a course of action.”
knew it was coming, but he still wasn’t ready. Thank fuck Virus was.
“There’s very little to dig up on Brent, no middle name, Wilson. A few moving violations, no employer, no lease in his name. No legal judgments. Nothing of note. Dude barely exists. Even his socials haven’t had activity for years.”
Croon piped in. “That doesn’t mean much, a lot of douche-cannons fly under the radar.”
“In this case, it’s what’s not there that causes my eyebrows to move.”
It took ’s brain a second before it caught on. Shit. “No divorce.” The thought that Nova was still married made him want to vomit.
“Close, my tattooed friend, go deeper.”
“That’s what she said,” Santa mumbled to himself. Zombie shot him a look, and Santa raised his hands in surrender.
“Look, he’s almost there,” Virus taunted. still didn’t get it.
“For fuck’s sake,” Squatch chided. “No legal filings at all .” He stressed the last word.
“I get that, but how does it help if Nova’s still married to the fucker? She thinks they’re divorced.”
“Marriage certificates are legal documents too, numb nuts.”
Wait, what?
“They were never married?”
“Ding, ding, ding, give the man a prize,” Squatch quipped.
flipped him off. “What about June?” If she wasn’t legally his, then that would help them in that department.
“He’s listed on the birth certificate, as well as co-owner of the van we got out there. And a driver’s license with the old address, that’s it.”
The more Croon revealed about what they could find on Brent, the larger that pit in his stomach grew.
“, you ready to share your suspicions?” Prez phrased it as a question, but it was anything but. Zombie was a happy-go-lucky kind of man until you fucked with women, children, or his family—and the club was family. If things were as they appeared, that piece of shit has done all three.
With a deep breath, he spoke. “June said some things to me that raised the hair on the back of my neck. It was…familiar. Something about what the fucker said to her, just…” He paused mid-story to give himself a mental pep talk. He didn’t want to tell his brothers about his past. They’d never look at him the same way again. Pity in his brother’s eyes would destroy him. However, for his Flower and Nova, he’d endure it.
“By familiar, I mean, it was what we were taught to say to recruit new kids.”
The various sounds and curious looks aimed his way almost had him chickening out.
“Recruit new kids for what?” barely recognized Squatch’s voice. It sounded as if his teeth were glued together and he’d just swallowed glass. realized his mistake. Squatch was thinking the worst of him.
“Sex,” he hastened to add. “I never recruited anyone.” The very thought transported him back in time and made him sick to his stomach. “But it was drilled into us. And something about what June’s sperm donor said to her. The way she said he said it, just scratched at a memory I’ve fought my entire adult life to forget.”
The room was so silent and still even the very air froze. It was the stillness he’d been afraid of. After that would come pity.
Bile rose in the back of his throat.
Fuck it.
would not retreat back to the boy he was. He would not cower before his brothers. He hadn’t cowered before anyone since he left that house of fucked-up horrors, and he damn sure wouldn’t start now.
“You can all take those sad eyes and pop them back in your fucking sockets right now. The only thing you need to worry about is my ol’ lady and my fucking little girl.”
It just spilled out that way. It wasn’t intentional. Nova would lose her shit if she knew he’d just laid claim to them in front of his whole club. It may just be a room to outsiders, but it was a sacred space during church. Words carried weight and cemented promises. They forged alliances and drew enemy lines clearly.
Even if Nova wouldn’t have him when the smoke cleared, no other Bastard would touch her after his claim. No matter what it ultimately was for Nova, in his heart, they’d always be his.
Zombie raised a brow and lifted his hand in a casual vote of ascension. Others followed suit without a word spoken, and that was that. The club approved.
If only Nova would be as easy.
“So be it,” Prez mumbled. “Carry on, .”
His throat was a little clogged, and not just from the subject matter he still needed to speak on. Fuck, he’d just claimed an ol’ lady. Did he even love her? She occupied every brain cell he had, that was for sure.
She brought a certain peace to his soul, and he loved knowing she was in his space. If he didn’t love her, he could see love coming. But could it be that simple? Nothing in his life ever had been for him.
It was done.
In the eyes of the club, she was his whether she wanted it or not. would let them go if that’s what they wanted. Hell, he wasn’t even going to tell her what he did. In a million years, he’d never take away her choice. He knew how precious that was. No matter what the club thought, she was free. Nova would be his only if she wanted to be.
“?” Outlaw prompted.
Shit.
highlighted more pertinent details.
He explained how the three boys ran away. How he’d thought, until the time Casey walked out, that they’d truly been brothers. He hated going into detail about who Barbara was. He left off the fact that they had to call her Mom , no way in hell was he sharing everything. They didn’t need to know those things in order to put an end to the current threat.
A part of his heart turned black at the thought of who the threat was and how he’d be the one to end him.
“Anyway, I believe Brent could be Casey. Maybe he started up where Barbara left off since it seems he’s pulling from her old playbook almost verbatim.”
“How do you know she left off? She could still be running the show. In my experience, people like that don’t retire.” It was a question he expected from Outlaw, since Zombie had asked him the same one earlier. One he’d dodged.
“She’s not,” denied emphatically.
“But we don’t know that. We need all the info on her so we can be prepared. Assumptions get people killed.” Leave it to Virus to keep digging.
“I know that. So, forget about Barbara, and focus on Casey.”
“How do you know that, ? It’s been yea—” Interrupting Prez wasn’t the smartest thing he’d ever done, but it wouldn’t be the dumbest either.
“I don’t care how long it’s been; I fucking know.”
Zombie’s voice had a hard edge to it that was rarely there. “How?” It was a command to answer. His tone said he knew was holding back, and he wasn’t allowing it.
rocketed up from his chair. Before he could gain control of himself, he shouted out a truth no one else knew.
“BECAUSE! I SLIT HER FUCKING THROAT AND WATCHED HER BLOOD SOAK INTO THE HIDEOUS GODDAMN BEDSPREAD SHE MADE ME FUCK HER ON RATHER THAN GET THE LITTLE BOY SHE ORDERED ME TO JUST SO I COULD GO FREE LIKE CASEY DID, OKAY!”
What in the unholy fucking world compelled him to utter that confession?
“Fuck,” he growled.
He picked up the nearest thing, which happened to be his chair, and threw it against the wall behind him.
The room went eerily silent.
Pacing back and forth like a caged animal, he locked his fingers in his hair until his scalp stung.
It wasn’t until Squatch stepped into his path and ran into him that he stopped. Expecting to see pity when he looked up into the face of one of his closest brothers, he was shocked. Instead, he saw rage and anger. But it was the love and kinship that were unexpected. The look in his eyes said Squatch could relate, and that wasn’t something he ever wanted in common with another.
had always known that Squatch had been through something horrid, but to see that confirmation on his face hurt his heart. Squatch wrapped him in an embrace of what could only be described as healing. No sooner did return it than Squatch pulled away. Patting him on the back and clearing his throat like hadn’t just confessed to killing his rapist.
“Good.”
Good?
That was all the big man had to say about cold-blooded murder? Good ?
Outlaw spoke up. “For the record, I had earbuds in and didn’t hear anything that was said earlier, so I’ll read the minutes later.” Everyone knew it wouldn’t be in the minutes.
“Fucking lawyers,” Santa quipped. There was a round of nervous laughter at Santa’s proclamation, but nothing like how they normally laughed. Humor was dead for the time being.
Zombie banged the gavel to regain everyone’s attention. “Sit down, and let’s finish up so we can get this princess party started.”
looked at the wrecked remains of his chair, then back at his Prez. Zombie’s reaction was to raise an eyebrow.
“When Prez says sit, you sit,” mumbled under his breath as he took a knee. had been expecting the worst. To feel awkward and like he no longer belonged. Different. But instead, it actually felt…normal. He breathed a sigh of relief. Zombie wasn’t treating him any differently.
When he’d blurted out the secret he thought he’d carry to his grave—that had been his biggest fear. Not going to jail and paying for what he’d done, but being seen differently. Having his brothers see him as a victim would’ve been unbearable. Normal was good.
Zombie carried on. “With that knowledge, we’re back to square one. Virus, pull up his driver’s license photo.”
When he had it pulled up, he spun the laptop around. “, is that Casey?” studied the grainy photo on the screen. “I can’t say for sure because the picture is shit. It’s been almost two decades, and the facial hair covers too much of his features. He was only around seventeen last time I saw him. If I had to guess, I’d say no, but I can’t be sure.”
Nothing was going as planned.
thought for sure he’d recognize Casey instantly, and all the pieces would fall into place. It was supposed to be nice and neat. They could make a battle plan, take him out, then move on with life. Nova and June would be safe and, maybe someday, his.
Instead, he’d confessed to murder, admitted to being raped and pimped out, claimed a family as his own, and now they had no clue who Brent was. It didn’t make sense. It was Barbara’s business model; he could feel it in his bones. That meant there were two people who needed to exit the land of the living.
“, go to Nova’s house, find a picture of Brent. Let’s confirm without a doubt if he’s Casey or not. That’ll give us a jumping off point.”
Why didn’t he think of that earlier?
“Will do, but I don’t think either way will change things. I mean, Brent may not be Casey, but he may be working for or with him. He could’ve taken over for Barbara.”
Zombie scratched his beard. “True, but getting a positive visual of Brent won’t hurt. One we can be on the lookout for. If it goes deeper, we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. For now, I think we need to increase our protection of your family. What’s the chances you could convince them to stay here?”
“About the same as finding a virgin in a whorehouse. Nova values her independence. Even the current situation is killing her. Nova wouldn’t want June uprooted, or more charity, as she calls it, from the club. She already feels guilty about June having to move, and if I hear how indebted she is to me or the club one more time, I might just lock her away until she sings a new tune.”
“I second that assessment, boss. She tells me thanks at least ten times a shift. She won’t even eat a burger at work without paying for it.”
Croon was backing him up again? missed his easy friendship with him, but if he was going to pity-forgive him, fuck that.
“I can respect a woman for that. I’d rather have them here, more secure, but I know you’ll protect them. I suggest we have a patch sit on the school while June’s there. Keep an eye on who’s coming and going and if anyone is hanging around more than they should be.”
Zombie looked pointedly at Virus with his orders. Virus nodded and started typing furiously. When he stopped, Prez continued.
“Ideally, we’d have a patch taking Nova to and from work too, but since she needs her independence, we’ll give her a tail.”
Virus typed some more. Likely making a schedule of who would do what. The man was a savant like that. He’d have it hammered down and on the club calendar before Zombie dropped the gavel.
“We’ll stay vigilant, but stay in the wait-and-see phase before?—”
A knock on the door halted Prez’s words. If someone was interrupting church, they either had a death wish, or it was life or death.
“Yeah.” Zombie nodded to Teach who got up and opened the door, blocking the room from whoever would be on the other side. He was a clean patch, so he still did the grunt work when a prospect wasn’t around.
“Hey, Teach.” Heidi’s voice floated in through the doorway. “Can you tell Nova’s here with June, and she’s pretty upset? Says she really needs to talk to him, it’s urgent. Oh, and the surprise party is no longer a surprise.” shot up from the floor where he’d been kneeling for way too long. If Nova ruined the surprise for June by bringing her early, it damn sure was urgent. She wouldn’t do that if she didn’t absolutely have to.
Zombie motioned for him to stop before rushing out.
“Heidi, love. Would you mind sending Nova in here and watching over June?”
From his vantage point behind Teach, he could see Heidi’s eyes soften as she looked at Zombie. Prez and his ol’ lady’s interactions used to make him squirm, but now he kinda wished Nova would look at him like that.
Heidi nodded and stepped away. Teach motioned Nova in. went to her immediately, wrapping her in his arms. She was trembling. let her hold on for as long as he thought he could get away with in the current environment. He hated to ease her away from him when she needed comfort, but it couldn’t be avoided. He led her to where he sat, and…nothing. Fuck, he couldn’t even offer her a seat.
“Teach.” Zombie snapped his fingers. Teach went to slide his seat over for Nova. was having none of it. He kneeled again and pulled her down to his knee instead. Having Nova on his knee was the smart thing to do. He had a feeling he was not going to like what she had to say, and being unable to jump up and start throwing things again was for the best.
wanted to ask her what was making her cry and then fix it, but this was not his domain. It was up to Prez to start that conversation. He’d invited her in, and this was his show.
“What’s going on, Nova?”
She sniffled, and felt her spine stiffen.
“I hate to ask for more because you guys have done so much for me already. I’ll never be able to repay you, but this isn’t about me. It’s about June.” Now it was ’s spine that stiffened.
Nova stood and fished inside her waistband.
“Brent was apparently at our house the other day when June was with Mrs. Griffith. He cornered her when she went over for a book.” Nova gulped. “He told her he’d come for her when she was worth more money, and if she told anyone, he’d hurt me.” She flung the object on the table. was paralyzed by what she was saying. “He gave her that so he could always find her .”
Virus stopped the object before it slid off the table. “A tracker.” He whistled before passing it to Zombie.
Zombie was studying it when he proclaimed, “Next phase.” No one questioned what he meant.
Wait-and-see phase was officially over.
Now it was time for action. was barely holding his shit together. The bastard had the gall to threaten his daughter. Yeah, June was his. Fuck who supplied the DNA. June was his, and so was Nova.
Action was the only way to keep them safe. He’d gut Brent or Casey or who the fuck ever, his damn self and laugh while doing it. He didn’t care if that made him a soulless monster.
“Anything you can find out about it?” Zombie asked, handing it back to Virus.
“The last four of his number, which is already known. Maybe I can find where he had it engraved, but that’s a long shot. Nothing that’ll be helpful.”
Nova turned to Virus. “You have his number?”
The man looked like he’d been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. Zombie came to his rescue. “It doesn’t matter. What matters is keeping you and your little girl safe.”
“No.” She turned to . “What matters is you’ve had his phone number and didn’t think that was something I needed to know?”
He’d fucked up. He knew it, but he didn’t even think to grab it from Virus and pass it along to Nova. It wasn’t a conscious decision to keep it from her, he just didn’t think about it.